


home for the holidays

by lilacsilver



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas Fluff, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:14:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21935803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilacsilver/pseuds/lilacsilver
Summary: Callum takes Rayla home to meet his family. College AU.
Relationships: Callum/Rayla (The Dragon Prince)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 161





	home for the holidays

**Author's Note:**

> You may recognize the first part of this if you follow me on Tumblr. It was previously part of my TDP drabble collection, but I added to it and decided to repost it as a standalone.

“Are ya sure it’s okay?” Rayla asks for the umpteenth time, even as she tucks another pair of socks into her suitcase. “Your family hasn’t seen you in months. They won’t mind?”

“Mind? Rayla, Dad’s called me at least five times in the past three days asking what you like to eat and whether you have any food allergies and what size pajamas you wear.” Callum holds up a sweater for her inspection, and as soon as she nods he takes it off the hanger to fold.

“Okay, okay...wait, pajamas? What?”

“He likes to do this whole matching-jammies family photo thing on Christmas Eve. You – you don’t have to be in it, if you don’t want to.”

“I want your family to like me, Callum. If that means wearin’ some silly pajamas with snowmen or reindeer all over ‘em, I’ll do it.”

“Okay, but you realize this means you’re stuck with me forever.”

“I can think of worse fates,” she laughs. “Now help me finish packin’, or we’ll never get out o’ here before the dorm closes.”

By some miracle they do, and by four-thirty they’re on the road to Katolis. As the terrain begins to change, growing steadily more familiar to Callum’s eyes, he points out all the landmarks of his childhood. Rayla’s heard his stories before, of course, but it’s different when she can see where they took place.

Her eyes widen when, well after sunset, Callum pulls into the long driveway that leads up to the imposing house. It’s all lit up, inside and out, with Christmas lights and decorations; she can’t help but inwardly wince at how high their power bill is likely to be with all of this.

“Callum?”

“Yeah?”

“I know you said the house was big, but I wasn’t expecting a _mansion._ ”

She thinks of her childhood home, a cozy little cottage on the edge of a forest, and suspects that it could fit inside this grand house five or six times over. It makes her want to turn right back around and leave, but – Callum. She loves Callum, and she wants to meet his family, and according to him they want to meet her just as much. So she takes a deep breath and opens the car door, and climbs out. Callum pops the trunk and they go around to fetch their bags.

The heavy oak door bangs open just as they start toward it, and a boy throws himself down the front steps at Callum.

“YOU’RE HOME!”

“Good to...see you, too, Ez...can’t breathe...”

“Oh, sorry!” Ez lets go and turns to Rayla. “Hi! You must be Rayla. Are you hungry? Dad said we couldn’t have dinner until everybody was here, but now you are, so we can eat!”

“Er...yes?”

She’s heard a lot about Ezran, and it seems Callum wasn’t even slightly exaggerating. He’s fifteen, but teenagerhood hasn’t done a whole lot to dim his enthusiasm for life. She and Callum let him tow them along to the kitchen, holding onto their suitcases for dear life.

“Dad! They’re here!”

A tall man turns from where he’s been checking a pot on the stove, and three long strides bring him over to them. He embraces Callum tightly, pulling back just a bit to look at him.

“It’s good to see you, son.”

“Good to see you, too, Dad.”

“And this must be the famous Rayla. Welcome to the madhouse. Call me Harrow.”

He hugs her, too, and it feels nice. Like a father’s hug should. She knows Runaan and Ethari love her, but they’re – it’s just not quite the same.

“I thought Rayla would want the green guest room,” Harrow continues. “Go put your stuff away and then we’ll eat.”

The green guest room lives up to its name, with emerald curtains on the king-sized four-poster bed and matching damask wallpaper. The promised pajamas are sitting on the pillow, and they are indeed covered in snowmen. They’re kind of cute.

Rayla hesitates before putting her clothes away in the antique armoire, but after all, they’ll be here for a full two weeks. No sense just leaving it all in her bags to get wrinkled.

\--

Meeting Callum’s aunt Amaya is easily the most nerve-wracking thing Rayla’s ever done, but somehow it goes just as smoothly as her introduction to Harrow. She knows how to sign _hello, my name is_ , and spell it out, thanks to Callum; he handles the rest.

“...tripped and fell right in a puddle,” he says, signing as he speaks. “Rayla stopped to help, and, well...”

It’s a heavily-edited account of how they met. Somehow, Rayla doubts Amaya (or anyone else at the table) would appreciate knowing that he was, in fact, pushed into the puddle by a student who thought Xadia University should only educate Xadians. Or that Rayla had cursed said student out, inventively and at length, for his middle-school-bully behavior.

“Lucky I was passin’ by that day,” she says, pausing to let Callum translate. “For a lot o’ reasons.”

Amaya smiles at her, and the last little knot of tension in her stomach vanishes. Matter of fact, everyone’s smiling. It feels like a victory.

“Who’s got room for dessert?” Harrow asks. “I should warn you I’ve never made moonberry surprise before. I hope it turned out right.”

It has. It’s just as good as the moonberry surprises back home.


End file.
